


Hope Returns

by Kerillian



Series: A Zora's Perseverence [1]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Cop Sidon, Gen, Hylian Prince Sidon, I wanted a Hylian Sidon AU but I love Zoras too much so I compromised, Kidnapping, Only some of the time though, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Recovery, Selectively Mute Link (Legend of Zelda), Suicide Attempt, acab irl btw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:41:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,708
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24418300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kerillian/pseuds/Kerillian
Summary: Link was abducted and held hostage for seven years by Ganon. The champions of Hyrule met violent ends in swift succession.Three years after Link's miraculous rescue, Sidon is finally prepared to help Link get back on his feet.
Relationships: Link & Prince Sidon
Series: A Zora's Perseverence [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1763404
Comments: 2
Kudos: 38





	Hope Returns

_‘CHAMPION OF HYRULE FOUND’_ , read the headlines, word of mouth, and even sounded the music in the air.

It was a headline nobody could escape, even if one were to break every phone and computer, break every radio and burn every newspaper. Someone would have written it across the sky - and the royal family had done so. The skyline of Hyrule City glowed with brilliant light, a celebration of courage no longer feared dead.

But it took seven years for Zelda to find Link after his disappearance. 

Seven long years of panic, which gave way to mourning as time passed, light draining from the people of Hyrule each day. 

The Champions had all dropped like flies after Link was abducted by Ganon, cut down while they were not yet ready; while Princess Zelda bloomed later than expected. Hyrule’s hope was ripped from its hands, and it was not returned so easily after society had learned to live with its despair. 

Years had passed since that day, and Hyrule was not much better. People rarely had real discussions about Link. History had not told of an event where power thwarted wisdom and courage like this since ancient times. The Triforce symbolised an immense and deeply established narrative of good triumphing over evil, right up until seven years ago. Now disillusioned, Hyrule did not celebrate the powers that created it so readily anymore. 

A generation of adolescents had entered adulthood believing Link was gone forever, and in the wake of his return, it became less important to them to observe his existence. A decade ago, this would have been unthinkable, but neither Zelda nor the king did much to rebuild his image in the eyes of the public. 

Sidon had never forgotten what Link meant to Hyrule. The Zora tribes rarely forgot any detail of the hero throughout the ages. Their longevity paired with their ancestral ties made Link’s incarnations the most beloved of non-Zora figures in their ancient history. His disappearance hit them harder than most, as it came shortly before the death of their very own Zora champion - Mipha, the king’s daughter, Sidon’s sister. Their grief ran deep, and gave way to an unprecedented age of sorrow in their carefree kingdom.

Sidon needed to do something. In the midst of Zelda’s search efforts, the prince had divested himself of his royal duties with King Dorephan’s unwavering support and entered Hyrule’s police academy. Though he could not help her directly while he trained and studied, he would do the next best thing. Sidon would no longer be treated like a prince, and it was exactly what he wanted. 

His endeavour served to benefit Link alone, and he wanted to put in the time and effort to get where he needed to be, not skip rungs in the ladder with his title alone. He felt in his heart that it was his destiny to help Link, wherever he was, regardless of whether or not he still lived. He knew Mipha would have wanted him to help the last remaining Champion, and he decided before Link had even been rescued that this destiny would not wait for him. 

When word reached Sidon that Zelda was seeking aid in matters relating to Link through the police force, he jumped at the chance to help. He transferred to the city headquarters from Lanayru province, and had an immediate audience with Princess Zelda.

He sat in a tea room in a section of the castle at Zelda’s insistence. Though he wanted this to be done more professionally, he couldn’t completely escape courtesy among royal friends.

Even so, as a detective who proved himself a shining star in the academy and a hard-working member of the police force, Sidon felt the culmination of his years of work approaching fruition. 

“As you know, we’ve approached the third anniversary of Link’s rescue,” She said, eyes fixed to the pot she poured on the table.

“Link still requires guidance, and he will continue to for quite some time.”

Sidon expected this of his duties, though the next thing Zelda did surprised him.

“You’ll want magic at your disposal for this.”

She handed him an amulet. Though it appeared plain, save for the gems set into the body, it felt unnaturally cold in his grasp.

“That amulet will turn you into a Hylian and back when you command it to.”

“What for?” Sidon asked her, weighing the piece in his palm.

“You need a more streamlined silhouette, for one. You’re massive even for a Zora, and it will make using police resources much easier for you.”

He was not enticed, but Sidon supposed she had a point.

“Would it not be easier for Link if he were to see me in my natural form? Does familiarity not help?” Sidon asked her.

Zelda pursed her lips. 

“Link’s memory has been compromised. There is very little he remembers of life before he was captured.”

Sidon’s gut clenched.

“I see. Does he remember Mipha?”

The princess shook her head.

“He doesn’t even remember what his parents were like. He remembers me, but only because the Triforce will never let him forget me.”

He processed this as she continued to speak, her tone lifting to dispel the gloom in Sidon’s face.

“Which is why I believe you should be Hylian. If you stay like this, he won’t recognise you as a friend, but he will spot you from a mile away should you have to tail him undercover.”

“Tail him,” Sidon echoed. He had learned not to have expectations of what this responsibility he was set to undertake entailed, but it was involving more subterfuge than he would have liked. 

“Does he know he’s under this kind of surveillance?”

“Link appreciates a sense of privacy and personal space, and personal bodyguards are out of the question at this point. He knows, and he may not like it much, but this is our compromise.”

Talking to Zelda was necessary, but Sidon had a sense that she wasn’t being entirely forthcoming. Hylia was and always has been known to the Zora as a goddess of cunning and trickery, but because she is benevolent, those traits are instead referred to as ‘wisdom’ by the people of Hyrule.

At least the timing gave Sidon ample opportunity to do some of his own research into the matter. He would not see Link for another month as he settled in.

  


* * *

  


Three weeks had passed since Sidon transferred to Hyrule City Police Department.

He sat in a department briefing room, leafing through a small section of a folder that would scar him with unspeakable sadness.

He was stunned into silence. In his hands, he held pictures of Link, wounded and ragged and only worse for wear each one he leafed through on the table. Bruises mottled him, cuts would appear, heal and disappear on different parts of his face. 

Even after Link’s rescue, there were times Sidon spent endless nights crippled by grief, wishing Mipha still lived to see the hero of legend finally come home, safe and sound. 

His heart hurt to feel so glad that Mipha could not see Link like this. It would have shattered her to the core.

Each picture, document and legal record pieced together a harrowing zoetrope depicting an incarnation of the hero whose kingdom had direly failed him.

“These were taken _after_ he was recovered, Captain.” Sidon stated to the woman beside him, sure enough for it not to be a question in his mind, but he was so taken aback that he needed confirmation.

“Between his recovery and his release from incarceration. The details are in the files.”

The captain seemed unbothered by the silence that ensued while Sidon was lost in the cold, quiet horror of it all

_Incarceration?_ They let him go to _jail?_

“I trust you’re equipped with enough reading material?” She asked, hand hovering over the doorknob while she looked on at him, no compassion in her eyes, nor a sense of urgency.

Just blankness.

“Yes. This is quite enough.” Sidon replied.

The captain nodded him goodbye, and her departure was swift. 

Sidon stared into Link’s dull blue eyes, peering at him from a mugshot simply entitled ‘Attempt #3’, dated while he was just fifteen years of age. His neck bore a scabbed purple line, the whites of his eyes shrouded with blood. It was a terrible existence for the hero - and he was the hero, Sidon really had to check once again. The files had documented his and Princess Zelda’s marks interacting. She spoke with Link regularly, though what they talked about was not documented in the files.

He could not understand how Zelda held herself above reproach for suppressing information about Link since his rescue. It was understood by all who knew of his condition that Hyrule would look weak, all would know that it was still vulnerable despite regaining one of its legendary warriors. But its greatest enemy, Ganon, already knew just how vulnerable they were - so _where_ was the sense in allowing Link to rot away in secrecy even after so much time and money was poured into rescuing him? 

Sidon knew that once he committed to undertaking this role, he could not back down. Too many people just keep on failing Link. The line of officers who simply quit supervising him disgusted Sidon, and for what? Convenience? 

Link was a vulnerable teen, not a child of Ganon. The idea of abandoning him was utterly revolting, though revulsion had since become familiar to him after he joined the police force.

He closed the file, laying it flat on the table and smoothing his hands over it. The thing was hefty, and he still had so much of it left to read before he was to meet Link in a week.

For all Sidon had to learn ahead of time, he was at least confident that Link was still selectively mute. His sign language was well-practiced, and one of the first things he educated himself on when Link was freed three years ago.

No matter what stage of preparation he was at, Sidon knew he would be the change he wanted to see in Hyrule, the one that would have made his dear sister proud.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is part of a series of short works in a Sidon/Link AU I have created that will be explicit and possibly confronting to some. Please keep this in mind if you choose to keep up with it :) 
> 
> As this is meant to be a series I work on to blow off steam, it will be forever unbeta'd. I would appreciate it if comments were kept free of critique. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading my work.


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